Method of delivering sheets and apparatus therefor



H. A. W. WOOD.

METHOD OF DELIVERING SHEETS AND APPARATUS THEREFOR.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 17. I918.

Patented Dec. 21, 1920.

- i stares PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY A. WISE WOOD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR WOOD NEWSPAPER MACHINERY CORPORATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., --A. CORPORATION OF VIR- GINIA.

To all, whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, HENRY A. WISE Woon,

"a citizen of the United States, residing at newspaper New York, inthe county of New York and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Method of Deliverin Sheets and Apparatus Therefor, of which t e following is a specification. a

This invention relates mainly to a method of delivering folded products or sheets from printing machines, particularly high speed 'rinting presses.

The principal objects of this invention are to provide a way of delivering sheets at high speeds without running the risk of having the sheets displaced as they strike the; final stop or crumpling up within the delivery, and at the same time to provide a method by which any increase in the speed does not decrease the accuracy of delivery as has been the case in the carrying out of the methods used heretofore; also to provide for laying the rear end of the sheet before its front end is laid by the fan; to provide for regulating the distance that the sheets can pass into the fan and evening them up therein; and to provide novel mechanism for accomplishing these objects in an accurate manner at high speed. Further objects and advantages will appear hereinafter.

Reference is to be had to the accompany ing drawing in which the figure is an eleva tion of a fan delivery adapted to operate in accordance with this invention.

Ordinarily in the traverse of the bundles.

of sheets or folded products from the folding rolls to the deliver belts of a newspaper press the forward en of each fo1dedproduct strikes a stationary stop. This is all right at slow speeds, but when running at a very high speed, as is necessary now in the production of newspapers, the forward end of the folded product will strike the fixed stop very suddenly and bound back. lfhis tends to destroy the accuracy of delivery and prevent the products being counted out in bundles of twenty-five or other numbers by the usual counter. It is also found in operation at high speeds that the sheets or bundles tend to get positioned unevenly in the fans at times, and heretofore nothing has been provided to restore them to an even position or prevent their getting out of line at one edge or the other. By this 1n- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 21-, 1920.

Application filed June 17, 1918. 7 Serial No. 240,493. I

vention the sheets are prevented from bounding. back when they strike the stationary stop and they are also led to it accurately.

In, a general way, this is accomplished according to the present invention by directing the sheets to travel in the direction of the periphery of the fan instead of across the fan or the fan blades, as has been the case heretofore. Thus the sheet is set trav elingin the same direction as the fan blade and that direction [does not have to be changed and part of the momentum lost.

Means is also interposed in the fan 'itself' for arresting or slowing down the leading end of the sheet soon after it enters the fan and before it has passed far alongits course therein.

As the fan operates at substantially half the speed of the sheet, this sudden reduction of speed during its onward motion causes the tail end of the sheet, which protrudes beyond the end of the fan, to move faster than'the forward end and faster than the fan. On account of its protruding beyond the fan this bends it over forwardly in the general direction of motion of the fan. This is caused to occur while the fan is traveling through several degrees of the circle, and at high speeds causes the rearmost 'end of the sheet or bundle to he slapped upon the pile of delivered sheets before the leading edge has reachedthe fixed stop, or at least not later than that time. In this way the rearmost edge of the sheet orbundle is laid accurately in place on the pile and is prevented by the friction of its surface with the uppermost sheet on the pile from moving along the pile rapidly in any direction. In other words, it has a grip on the pile at the time the leading edge comes into contact with the fixed stop. In that way it is prevented from rebounding and is arrested in the final position in which itis to be laidon the pile or the belts. Thus the sheet is deliveredwith accuracy at very high speeds, and increases in the speed do not destroy or reduce the accuracy of delivery.

. contact with a concave guide 13 located in fixed position to receive that end and give it a curvature'such that it will be ready to be received in the pocket between the lower convex part of this guide 13 and a similarly curved fan blade 14 on the delivery fan. This fan is mounted upon the usual fan shaft 15, and the blades have their operative ends arranged on the arcs of a circle concentric with the convex portion of the guide 18 and with the shaft 15. In this way it will be seen that the sheet A is led into the fan in the di'- rection of its periphery instead of being led normally against the surface of a fan blade that projects at an angle with reference to the circumference of the fan. I

As the fan blade 14 comes EIIOllIldlIltO position to receive the sheet, it assumes the po sition shown in the drawing in which. thereis a pocket or space between the convex part of the guide 13 and the fan blade. The sheet A, moving twice as fast as the fan, will gain on the latter. I have provided an adjustable stop 16 extending across each fan blade at a distance from itsreceiving edge to form the bottom of the sheet receiving pocket. The sheet comes against this shortly after it is received by the blade and is positioned evenly. If one edge ,or the other of the sheet has got out of line in its descent from the folding rolls, its contact with this stop will straighten it up.

As is well understood in this art, a stationary stop 17 is employed at the bottom or delivery side of the fan and in this case it is shown as fixed on the bottom of the guide 13. On account of the high speed at which I desire to run this machine, I find it necessary to prevent the leading edge of the sheet or bundle striking this stop 17 with its full force and at its high speed because that has been found to make it bound back and tend to reduce the accuracy of delivery.

The features; above mentioned are employed to bring aboutthis result and they cause it in the following way: Ely-suddenly arresting the onward motion of the leading edge of the sheet by causing it to strike the stop 16, the tail end of the sheet, which at that time sticks out above the upper edge of the fan blade, necessarily is given aforward motion. Or rather its forward motion is continued at a higher speed than that of the leading end. That causes the rearmost end of the sheet to bend forward over the rear edge oithe fan blade. It is to be understood that at this time this rear edge has proceeded down to a point between the pos1- tion of the blade shown in the drawing just meepei in the act of receiving the sheet, and the one below shown delivering a sheet.

The delivery belts 18 below, which are of the usual type, are located in such position that this rearmost end slaps down upon them just previous to delivery in substantially the manner indicated at A in the drawing. In this way the rear end of the sheet is laid accurately in place on the pile of sheets thereon'and momentarily grips the same so to speak at the instantthat the leading end comes into contact with the stop 17. I

prevents the sheet from rebounding away from the stop because the sheet is already substantially arrested by its rearmost'por- 'tion gripping the sheets underneath.

It will be understood of course that the above description is a statement of the action of a sheet or bundle delivered at high speed. When it is delivered at slow speed this action does not necessarily take place, but in that case the difliculty above mentioned is not present either, so the devicewill work at all speeds. As a matter of fact I have found that the higher'the speed the greater the certainty of the operation in the manner I have described. It is to be understood of course, further, that this folded product, consisting of several pages, has considerable weight and this is taken advantage of in the present instance to arrest itby bringing it into contact with the sheets below. j

l have shown the mechanism as associated with the usual counter mechanism involving the disk 20, cam roll 21, counter spring 22, and counter toe 23, the construction and operation of which are well'known and will not be described in detail, but it is to be observedthat this invention is particularly desirable where such a counter is used because it cannot count oil the desired number of sheets properly unless they are placedwith a high degree of accuracy on the belts.

Although I have illustrated and described only a single way of carrying out the inventlon and a s1ngle form of the mechanism and shown 1t as applied to a certain type of folding device and counting mechanism, 1

am aware of the fact that the invention can be carried out in otherways and associated with other folding and delivery construetions without departing from the scope of this invention as expressed in the claims. Therefore I do not wish to be limited to all the details 01' construction herein shown and described, but What'l do claim is 1. The method of delivering printed products at high'speeds, which comprises laying the rear portion of-each product in its final' position before the forward parts are laid and then moving'the forward end of the sheet forwardly substantially in the direction of the plane in which the rear portion lies.

2. The method of delivering printed products at high speeds, which comprises laying the rear portion of each product in its final position before the forward parts are laid, keeping the central and forwardparts above the place of delivery for an instant, and then dropping the forward part and finally the central part. t

3. The method of delivering printed products, at high speeds, which comprises advancing said products edgewise along a course and moving the rear end of each faster than the front. end until the rear end is laid in its position-of delivery without interru ting the forward edgewise motion of the ront end. t

4. The method of delivering printed products at high speeds,which comprises advancing said products edgewise along a course, retarding the forward end and delivering the rear end first without interrupting the forward edgewise motion of the front end.

5. The method of delivering a flexible printed product which comprises directing the same to move forward edgewise along a curved course, swinging the rear end outwardly and forwardly before final delivery, and supporting both sides of the forward portion of the product to prevent crumpling. 6. The method of delivering 'a folded product which comprises carrying the product along a curved course at a high speed, forcing the rear end outwardly and forwardly from said course, and laying said.

rear end on the pile while its center is positively held-up at a distance from the pile and before the leading end engages the pile.

7. The method of delivering the product j of a printing press which consists in carrying the product forwardalong a curved path and at the same time reducing the speed of motion of the forward end of the product so as to throw the rear end thereof forwardly and bring it into contact with a previously delivered product before the center of the product is laid out flat andthe delivery of the entire roduct completed.

8. The method '0 delivering a ri'nted product or the like which consists 1n carrying the product forward and at the same time reducing the speed of motion of the forward end of the product without changing its direction of motion so as to throw the rear end thereof forwardl and bring it into contact with a pile 0 previously delivered products before the leading end of the product is positively arrested.

9. The method of delivering the folded product of a printing press which consists in moving it along a curved course, slowing up the speed of the forward end of the product without restricting the rear end whereby the rear end is accurately laid in position, and thereafter stopping the front end positively in a predetermined position but at such distance from the rear end as ,to

' cause the product to be laid out flat without product which comprises directing the same to travel into a delivery fan in the direction of the periphery of said fan, positioning it evenly therein, suddenly slowing up the forward end of the sheet after it enters the fan, and then diverting the rear end outwardly and forwardly before final delivery.

12. The combination with a rotary delivery fan having a circumferentially located blade for receiving a sheet, of a stop .for the sheets adjustably located for regulating their position along the blade and keeping them straight therein.

13. In a delivery, the combination with a delivery fan and a stop mounted on each blade, the length of the blade beyond the stop being materially less than the length of the folded product, whereby the rear end of the product can be caused to bend over ;he same forwardly by the rotation of the 14. In a delivery, the combination with a delivery fanhaving concentric blades, with a guide located to provide a space between the guide and the fan blades'of constant width, and a stop mounted on each blade, the length of the blade beyond the stop being materially less than the length of the folded roduct, whereby the rear v end of the pro not can be caused to bend .of the folded product, whereby the rear edge of the product can be caused to bend over the same forwardly by the rotation of the fan.

16. In a delivery, the combination with a delivery fan having circumferential blades,

with a guide located within the path of the circumferential portions of said blades and having a part thereof substantially concentric therewith to provide a space between the guide and the fan blade of constant width, and a stop adjustably mounted on a blade to control the ultimate position of the folded product therein.

17. .In a delivery, the combination with a delivery fan having concentric circumferential blades, with a fixed guide located within the path of the circumferential pora I mas er tions of said blades and having a part thereof substantially concentric therewith to provide a space between the guide and the fan blade of constant width, 3, stop adjustably mounted on a blade toicontrol thevultimate position of the folded product therein, and a fixed stop on the fixed guide in position to limit the travel of the folded product to the fan.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature. 4

. HENRY A, WISE WOOD. 

